Cutlery grinding apparatus



Nov. 19, 1963 E. J. BRAUCHLE 3,110,985

CUTLERY GRINDING APPARATUS Filed June 25, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR EDWIN J'. BRAUCHLE Nov. 19, 1963 J. BRAUCHLE 3,110,985

CUTLERY GRINDING APPARATUS Filed June 25, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 22 j INVENTOR 24 26 EDWIN JIBRAUCHLE United States Patent 3,110,985 CUTLERY GRINDING APPARATUS Edwin J. Brauchle, 718 NW. 114th St., Miami, Fia- Filed June 25, 1962, Ser. No. 204,988 3 Claims. (Cl. 51-102) The present invention relates to improvements in cutlery grinding apparatus.

The principal object of the invention is to provide air cooled cutlery grinding apparatus including a grinding wheel so constructed and arranged as to gather cooling air during its rotary movement with the advantage among others, of avoiding loss of temper of the blade being sharpened.

Another object of the invention is to provide cutlery grinding apparatus which may be efficiently operated by relatively unskilled persons and yet produce the same results obtained by highly skilled or professional grinders employing conventional apparatus.

Still another object of the invention is to provide cutlery grinding apparatus wherein a blade may be sharpened while in its uppermost position and in the line of vision of the operator so that an even grind may be obtained and any overgrinding avoided.

The invention also contemplates the provision of a novel grinding wheel having a bevelled peripheral grinding surface whereby a blade may be sharpened without any obstruction by the motor housing or other par-ts of the apparatus and which also provides for sharpening selected tines of a fork without harm to the remaining tines.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein a preferred embodiment of the principles of the invention has been selected for exemplification.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a grinding wheel and blade guide means constructed in accordance with the invention, it being understood that the wheel is rotated by conventional means such as any suitable electric motor, not shown because the same and its support and housing means form no part of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an edge view of FIG. 1 but with the blade fragment omitted;

FIG. 3 is a top fragmentary view of the right hand portion of FIG. 1 showing the position of the knife blade in engagement with the guide and a side grinding surface of the grinding wheel;

FIG. 4 is a front elevational view of the grinding wheel shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a rear elevational view of FIG. 4;

PEG. 6 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 6-6 of FIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary edge view of the grinding wheel.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, wherein like numerals refer to like parts, the grinding wheel, indicated in its entirety at 10, may be formed of any suitable abrasive material. The central portion 12 of the grinding wheel has a bore receiving a sleeve 14 through which the threaded reduced end portion of an electric motor shaft :16 projects for engagement with a mating threaded nut 18 whereby to secure the grinding wheel to the shaft for rotation therewith. The nut 18 is secured to a plate member :20 fastened to the central portion 12 of the wheel by any suitable means such as screws 22 as shown.

The radially extending outer portions of the wheel are generally of truncated conical shape in cross-section so that the opposite front and rear grinding sides 24 3,1 10,985 Patented Nov. 19, 1963 "ice and 26 of the wheel slant inwardly to present angular abrading surfaces for the knife edge being sharpened. As an important feature of the invention, the opposite grinding surfaces 24 and 26 of the wheel are interrupted by a series of annular grooves 28 and 30, respectively, which provide the air cooling function. The grooves 28 and 30 form concentric ribs of generally square formation with their side faces being angled upwardly and outwardly from the parallel axis of the drive shaft and the outer faces of the ribs constitute the grinding surfaces 24 and Q6. As the wheel is rotated in the grinding operation the grooves 28 and 30* act as air scoops to provide cooling air for the intervening grinding surfaces and, when a knife blade is in engagement with such surfaces as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, a portion at least of the air housed in the annular grooves is discharged around the cutting edge of the blade whereby to cool the blade and avoid any tendency to overheating. The annular grooves at each side of the wheel are preferably offset as best shown in FIG. 6.

The circumferential surface 32 of the wheel 10' is bevelled, as shown, to slope downwardly and outwardly toward the front face of the wheel. It will be apparent that any knife blade in transverse contact with the pe ripheral surface 3-2 will be tilted away from the motor grinding shaft 16 so as to avoid any likelihood of contact of the end of the blade with the motor housing. A fork prong or tine sharpening groove 34 is provided at the highest portion of the surface 32 so that as a selected tine of a horizontally disposed fork is positioned in alignment with and sharpened in the groove 34, the remaining tines will either clear the lower portion of the surface 32 or project outwardly beyond the surface.

For properly positioning a knife blade, indicated at B, against the grinding surfaces 24 or 26, suitable guide means, indicated in its entirety at 36, is preferably provided. As best shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, such guide means 36 may comprise a base 38 adjustably secured to the apparatus frame base in any suitable manner such as by a wing nut, as shown. An upright post 40 is carried by the inner end of the base 38 to project toward the surface 2 of the wheel 10 and opposed guide arms 42 and 44 are pivotally carried by the upper end of the post 4!) as indicated at 46. The arms 42 and 44 are adapted to be fixed in any angular position best suited to guide the blade B in appropriate engagement with the grinding surfaces 24 and 26 and, to this end, the length of the post 40 is provided with a plunality of apertures 48 adapted selectively to receive a pin 50 to expand the arms 42 and 44 or to contract the same as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. For further adjustment of either of the arms 42 and 44 the pin 56 may be provided with a flat side 52 which :may be turned in facing contact with the inner edge of either arm 4-2 or 44 to vary its angular position and to provide a firmer support for the arm. The pin 50 desirably may be secured to the guide base 38 by suitable flexible means as shown at 54.

It will be apparent that when the :guide means 36 is properly adjusted and a blade B bears against either of the arms 42 or 44 for reciprocating sharpening engagement with either of the grinding surfaces 24 and 26, the wheel 114 as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 1, will rotate downwardly against the blade cutting edge which is at all times in (full view of the operator to enable him to efiect the desired even sharpened edge. Such positioning of the blade B relative to the direction of rotation of the wheel 10 also prevents the blade from being thrown outwardly of the wheel 10 and thus avoids likelihood of injury to the operator.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that my invention provides cutlery grinding apparatus having many important advantages over the equipment heretofore known. The wheel .10, in addition to its very important air cooling advantages, provides a variety of diiferent grinding functions adapted for different shapes and sizes of blades and cutting edges, as Well as for forks, and the adjustable guide means 3 6 enables even unskilled operators to obtain desired smooth sharpened edges on various shapes and sizes of blades without unwanted damage to the blade.

It is to be understood that my invention is not confined to the precise construction and arrangement of parts herein illustrated and described but embraces all such modifications thereof as may come Within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. Cutlery grinding apparatus which comprises, a grinding wheel, drive means for rotating said wheel, the

said Wheel having a beveled periphery providing a cir- V cumferenti al grinding surface slanting outwandly and downwardly of said drive means, the said wheel having a central portion for driven connection with said drive means and radially extending outer grinding portions, the said radially extending outer portions of said wheel being generally of truncated conical shape in cross-section and having inwardly slanting opposite side grinding surfaces, spaced annular grooves in each of said side grinding surfaces for receiving air to cool said side grinding surfaces and cutlery being ground thereby, and adjustable guide means for positioning a cutlery blade edge in grinding contact with one of said side grinding surfaces, the said guide means including an upright post, opposed cutlery blade supporting arms pivotally supported by said post and means for selectively positioning said arms transversely of the periphery of said Wheel.

2. Cutlery grinding apparatus which comprises, a grinding wheel, drive means for rotating said wheel, the said wheel having a central portion for driven connection with said drive means and radially extending outer grinding portions, the said radially extending outer portions of said wheel being generally of truncated conical shape in cross-section and having inwardly slanting opposed side grinding surfaces, spaced annular grooves in each of said side grinding surfaces for receiving air to cool said side grinding surfaces and cutlery being ground thereby, and adjustable guide means for positioning a cutlery blade edge in grinding contact with one of said side grinding surfaces, the said guide means including an upright post, opposed cutlery blade supporting arms pivotally supported by said post and means for selectively positioning said arms transversely of the periphery of said wheel.

3. Adjustable guide means for positioning a cutlery blade edge in grinding contact with a side grinding surface of a grinding wheel, the said guide means comprising an upright post, opposed cutlery blade supporting arms pivotally supported by said post and means for selectively positioning said arms transversely of said post and located adjacent the periphery of the wheel whereby to position a knife blade against either of the side grinding surfaces of the wheel.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 813,142 Dilg Feb. 20, 1906 1,108,631 Stott July 14, 1914 1,414,172 Brown Apr. 25, 1922 1,670,479 Olson May 22, 1928 1,726,571 Kelley Sept. 3, 1929 2,017,487 Elliot Oct. 15, 1935 2,049,874 Sherk Aug. 4, 1936 2,149,258 Heitler Mar. 7, 1939 2,201,410 Simonds May 21, 1940 2,257,407 Wulff Sept. 30, 1941 2,898,709 Bednarski Aug. 11, 959 

1. CUTLERY GRINDING APPARATUS WHICH COMPRISES, A GRINDING WHEEL, DRIVE MEANS FOR ROTATING SAID WHEEL, THE SAID WHEEL HAVING A BEVELED PERIPHERY PROVIDING A CIRCUMFERENTIAL GRINDING SURFACE SLANTING OUTWARDLY AND DOWNWARDLY OF SAID DRIVE MEANS, THE SAID WHEEL HAVING A CENTRAL PORTION FOR DRIVEN CONNECTION WITH SAID DRIVE MEANS AND RADIALLY EXTENDING OUTER GRINDING PORTIONS, THE SAID RADIALLY EXTENDING OUTER PORTIONS OF SAID WHEEL BEING GENERALLY OF TRUNCATED CONICAL SHAPE IN CROSS-SECTION AND HAVING INWARDLY SLANTING OPPOSITE SIDE GRINDING SURFACES, SPACED ANNULAR GROOVES IN EACH OF SAID SIDE GRINDING SURFACES FOR RECEIVING AIR TO COOL SAID SIDE GRINDING SURFACES AND CUTLERY BEING GROUND THEREBY, AND ADJUSTABLE GUIDE MEANS FOR POSITIONING A CUTLERY BLADE EDGE IN GRINDING CONTACT WITH ONE OF SAID SIDE GRINDING SURFACES, THE SAID GUIDE MEANS INCLUDING AN UPRIGHT POST, OPPOSED CUTLERY BLADE SUPPORTING ARMS PIVOTALLY SUPPORTED BY SAID POST AND MEANS FOR SELECTIVELY POSITIONING SAID ARMS TRANSVERSELY OF THE PERIPHERY OF SAID WHEEL. 